Goofy Plans

I have mentioned before that I want to do the "Goofy" in 2013 - Disney World Half Marathon on Saturday, followed by the full on Sunday in January 2013. And possible the 5K or 1M kids fun run with the Monkey, he loves to run with me :)

So I am going to train for long runs. No tempo runs, no track, no speed work - the thought leaves me cold. Just 4-5 days a week of hills with a long (1-2 hour) run on Saturday and an even longer (3-4) run on Sunday.

For April, my goal is 4 miles a day, every day. Some runs, lots of walking. May it will be 5 miles a day, with of course longer weekend distances. Some 5-10K races thrown in when I can find and afford them. June 6 miles... you can see the progression right? Every month I will increase the daily mileage to match the month. I will be going s l o w... to decrease injury, and building overall stamina and speed. And I will keep eating a Paleo-Primal diet. No grains, lots of meat, veg, fat, some fruit and the occasional sweet potato (most likely on long run days).

I reserve the right to adjust this when I need to, but right now, this plan makes me feel good.



I'm goofy, and next year, I'll have proof :)

Kettlebells and Cold Baths

Okay, so I don't want to brag or anything, but I am looking hot lately. Like super hawt :) I have energy galore, I don't want to pass out and fall asleep in the middle of the day (as long as I avoid dairy) and I am running again - and I am going to do my first half marathon in 6 weeks. :)

But back to becoming a rock star paleo running mom. Kettlebells. Kettlebells are awesome! My neighbor and I have been doing them for about a week now, and I can see some toning benefits in my lower body. I need to make them heavier (I made my own kettlebell so I could adjust the weight) to get more out of the upper body, but this is just the best workout. 8-12 minutes and I am done with strength training. Another 20-40 for a good walk/run and I have hit all my fitness goals for the day.

And my upper body is losing fat. My weight really hasn't changed it is staying steady at about 249+-1lb, but I can almost see my overall body fat percentage dropping, so I know that the weight will eventually have to follow. Right now I am doing my best not to freak about it, keep eating my healthy Paleo-Primal diet, and enjoying the want/need/desire to move and be active again.

Mad

I am mad. I am spitting nails angry.

What am I angry at? Conventional Wisdom. The conventional wisdom that told me at 17 and 5'11 I should weigh 113lbs. The conventional wisdom that has told me throughout y adult life that I must be a lazy glutton because I could not eat little enough or workout long enough and hard enough to lose weight.

The conventional wisdom that constantly tells me that I can save money by cutting back on my credit card spending (don't have any), go out to eat or for entertainment less each month (haven't gone out to eat in except for with family that picked up the bill in 4 or more years, haven't seen a movie in 5) by cutting back on things like TV and internet (haven't cut back on internet, no cable, no satellite TV...).

I am mad at the conventional wisdom that never told me that the problems I have had with my teeth and my nails for the last 20 years have a direct correlation to my weight, energy, overall health...

I wish I had found and stuck with primal style eating 15-20 years ago. I am happy that I have found it now, and I am glad that I will be rebuilding the next 2/3rds of my life to be optimally fit and healthy, but I am angry that it took so long. I am going to use this angry to change me, change my family, and eventually change the world!

Leptin - The Big Bad Master Hormone and Me

I think this is working. Granted I am up 4lbs this week, but as I am just ending my TOM, that is really not bad. And I am not concerned.

Last week I started following Dr. Jack Kruse's Leptin Reset program in conjunction with the primal diet. It will take a long time for me to regain leptin sensitivity, but I am confident I can follow this WOE for the rest of my life. Heck, I already have a little proof that it is working!

Normally my TOM is 7 days of excessive bleeding, cramps, mood swings and uncontrollable cravings. I would normal ditch a low carb or primal WOE as soon as the first strains of PMS hit. Except they didn't hit this month. I did bow to the demand for chocolate because it wasn't there. I did not eat bread despite making two fresh loafs in the past 2 days. Was briefly tempted by the smell of the bread and cut it up for the hubby and the boys with barely a second thought.

And best of all... The excessive bleeding I mentioned usually requires 3 days of pads AND tampons that are changed every hour-2 hours. I thought I was going to be in some serious trouble because I forgot to pick up tampons when I went grocery shopping - and only had about 6 left. I only need 5 total! Because instead of 3 days of heavy bleeding it was 1/2 a day! And after 3- 3.5 days my TOM is DONE! I am amazed. And despite this head/chest cold that will not go away I feel awesome.

There is one more part of this that I think is really working for me.

`

Photo from A&E TV website, for "Hoarders"

While I was never quite "Hoarders" bad I am admittedly a slob. I don't mean to be or want to be, but I get overwhelmed and can't deal. In that respect my kitchen has been a disaster since before Christmas - especially with 5 puppies getting into every thing and not quite being completely housebroken. It was all I could do to keep up with cleaning up after them and getting enough dishes done to make dinner before I was mentally and physically overwhelmed by it all.

But Saturday I looked at my kitchen and said to myself - "Man I need to clean this place up!" And did it. Without wanting to cry, without being overwhelmed, and in just over an hour my kitchen was more or less clean. I need to mop the floor 2X a day (puppies) but still. For thise that know me personally they know what a big deal this is.

So going primal and fixing my leptin is fixing me inside and out, mentally and physically. I cannot wait for the tomorrow and next week and next month and the spring and summer and fall and next year because I know each day living this life is bringing me one more step closer to the super awesome person I am supposed to be!

Cartwheels

I could never really do a good summersault. My belly got in the way. And handstands or headstands were far beyond the ability of my upper body to support the rest of my weight. But I could pull off a decent cartwheel. I was known to do a random one out of sheer happiness and excess energy now and again. I have not done a cartwheel in at 13 years.

But I feel like I could do one today. I am too scared to attempt it right now, but I have the energy and joy that I used to have when I would do them.

The joy comes from seeing my stepson for the first time in 10 years - and finally introducing him to his little brothers.

It comes from finally bouncing off my stalled weight plateau and incrementally headed down.

It comes from eating well, being satisfied and NOT craving junk at "that" time of the month.

It comes from being on the right path and knowing it. :)

Goals not met so far...

Okay, I have been having serious trouble meeting my goals for January - as evidenced by the fact that I have not been posting everyday as was my initial intention. I have not been working out very much either.

On the plus side, I have been following my primal WOE (way of eating - I like this so much better than "diet") with a good 80/20 success rate. I know I eat more dairy and nuts than recommended (I have been keeping it full fat and organic as much as possible) and I have nibble on hot dogs (not recommended) and ranch dressing (has "modified food starch - a clever way to say "wheat") which I suspect has stalled my progress somewhat. I gained 5lbs the first week on PB (Primal Blueprint) putting me at 259, but that has come back down to 253.4 - and I suspect another pound or two has come off since I weighed myself last week, but as I have no heat right now (ran out of oil for the furnace, can't get a delivery until Monday, been 35-45 in my house for 4 days!), I am not getting undressed to weigh myself any time soon!

When I have low carbed and tried Paleo or clean eating in the past I have never let go of my splenda, or "Atkins approved" treats... so I had never had the taste bud shift. This time (while I still use Stevia in my coffee) I have avoided treats in general this month. So the other day when I made a steak for dinner and dipped a bite in steak sauce, my first reaction was "OMG how much sugar is in this stuff!" - apparently 2g per serving, and a serving ain't all that big! My new preferred steak sauce is a dash of sea salt and a pat of organic butter, so good - I could eat my weight in steak when it is prepared right! :)

So, I will eventually LHT (Lift Heavy Things) most likely using ChaLEAN Extreme, I will sprint using Turbo Fire, and I will get in lots of movement running or using my NordicTrack Ski machine. I know if I follow these PB "laws" I will see the success I want!